Ivan’s Blog

This morning I listened to a traditional roundtable discussion, called Noble Minds, with the 2017 Nobel Laureates at the Grünewald Hall in the Stockholm Concert Hall, hosted by BBC's Zeinab Badawi. I am always fascinated by the creative ideas and the display of higher...

I talk a lot, much more than I should, most of the time more than I should. Speaking less and listening more is one of my more elusive traits. I continue to try and strike a better balance between listening and speaking but at best I am a work in progress. I possess a...

I am constantly reminded to take things easy and not to sweat the small stuff. I even recall a very successful book with the same title some years ago. There is no shortage of social media posts either. You know the kind that combine corny worded images with a sad...

I work with a colleague who is the embodiment of what it means to be calm. I have been in a number of meetings with her, and I don’t think I have ever seen her losing her cool, ever. She listens carefully and responds with well thought out questions while I am trying...

It came as a big surprise to me when I realised that I don’t have to respond to everything I hear, see or experience. One would think that we would know this, but we get sucked into a world that never shuts up and has primed us with useless rewards to constantly act –...

As you may or may not be aware, I am a huge cycling fanatic. As I steam up our local hills in my stretched lycra pants, I will admit, I am not necessarily holding my breath to be called to ride in a pro-tour. But there are guys who can and did all of that many times...

Finally, after many months of remaining indoors, and only nipping to town for the essentials, I was beginning to think we are slowly winning the fight against Covid. This was last year (2020), then the second variant struck at around Christmas. I know because my...

I was fascinated by school. From day 1 I enjoyed learning new things and making my teacher happy. I had a strict upbringing, and my mother was especially hard on me when it got to my personal neatness and the state of my ripped shirts. We played running-red-rovers...

Two things kind of happened at the same time; the Tour de France started on the Saturday, and another adjusted Level 4 lockdown was announced by the president on the Sunday, this time with his iPad safely in front of him. While these two events seem to share no...

Part of my morning routine is to watch documentaries as I brush my teeth and shave. It gets my mind working and I have expanded my general knowledge on a host of topics over the years. But today I opted for a different option, I saw a post on Instagram about Conan...